1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to digital watches, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved digital watch crystal which serves as a mirror. A fluorescent display may also be utilized in conjunction with a tinted watch crystal. Various types of displays are utilized in conventional digital watches. Liquid crystal displays and LED displays are widely utilized. Liquid crystal displays have the advantage of an extremely low power consumption, allowing them to be visible at all times. However, these liquid crystal type displays are not visible in a darkened room. LED type displays have the advantage of easy visibility in dark rooms, but because of their high power consumption, the wearer must activate the display by pushing a button on the side of the watch casing. LED displays are also difficult to read in bright sunlight. Both of the liquid crystal and LED type displays are disadvantageous in that they provide a relatively unattractive watch face. Some watch manufacturers have even gone to the length of providing both liquid crystal and LED displays on a single watch. Despite the more accurate nature of digital watches, conventional analog watches retain a large market share, due to their more attractive appearance. The present invention addresses these problems by providing a digital watch display which is easily read in any light, and also presents an attractive watch face.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of digital watches are known in the prior art. A typical example of such a digital watch is to be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,871,170, which issued to J. Bergey on Mar. 18, 1975. This patent discloses a solid state digital wristwatch with an electro-optical digital display of the LED type. Incorporated in the watch is a switch for actuating the display in response to a predetermined movement of the wearer's arm. U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,206, which issued to R. Martino on July 27, 1976, discloses digital watch and watchband arrangement in which the watch batteries are located in the watchband, separate from the watch movement and display. U.S. Pat. No. 3,984,973, which issued to E. Ho on Oct. 12, 1976, discloses digital watch with a dual display. A liquid crystal display for use in daylight or bright light, and a LED display for use in dim light, are provided. U.S. Pat. No. 4,086,754, which issued to M. Yonekawa et al on May 2, 1978, discloses digital watch which utilizes a LED display. An ornamental coating is provided over the rear surface of a front glass sheet except in the viewing region thereof. The coating may be provided through the use of painting, printing and vacuum deposition. A color filter corresponding to the color of the LED display is provided at least over the viewing window region. This arrangement is an attempt to provide an ornamented watch face display. U.S. Pat. No. 4,255,806, which issued to K. Fahrenschon et al on Mar. 10, 1981, discloses display for a digital watch which has a plurality of segment electrodes extending radially about a center point. This digital display may be operated through a multiplex arrangement to simulate the display of a conventional analog watch.
While the above mentioned devices are suited for their intended usage, none of these devices provide a digital watch crystal which forms a mirror. Further, none of the above patents disclose the use of a fluorescent display in conjunction with a tinted watch crystal. Additionally, none of the above patents disclose a watch crystal having a mercury coating on an inner surface. None of the prior art digital watches described above disclose a digital watch with an attractive display face. Inasmuch as the art is relatively crowded with respect to these various types of digital watches, it can be appreciated that there is a continuing need for and interest in improvements to such digital watches, and in this respect, the present invention addresses this need and interest.